UFC Live 6 Prelims: Edwards Rebounds, Takes Out ‘Tractor’

Yves
Edwards had no issues bouncing back from his vicious knockout
defeat to Canadian Sam Stout four
months ago.

The well-traveled Edwards (41-17-1, 9-5 UFC) weathered some early
flurries, picked his spots and stopped
AMA Fight Club representative Rafaello
Oliveira on second-round strikes at UFC
Live 6 on Saturday at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C.
The Bahamian-born American Top Team veteran polished off Oliveira
2:44 into round two, as he posted his seventh win in his past nine
appearances.

“I know Rafaello is a really tough guy. I just had to get my timing
down,” Edwards said. “I took a page from my last fight, from my
opponent, and switched it up. Ultimately, I’m just a guy fighting
in front of a crowd asking them to love him.”

Edwards countered effectively throughout the match, firing kicks to
the head, legs and body. He floored Oliveira (14-5, 1-4 UFC) with a
stout left hand in the second round and later with a head kick.
From there, he moved to half guard, dropped blows and transitioned
to the back, where he finished it with more punches.

Sass Heel Hook Taps Johnson

British submission ace Paul Sass
remained undefeated as a professional, as he coaxed a tapout from
“The Ultimate Fighter” Season 12 finalist Michael
Johnson with a first-round heel hook in a preliminary
lightweight duel. Johnson (9-6, 1-2 UFC) raised the white flag 3:00
into round one.

Sass (12-0, 2-0 UFC) tried twice to pull guard before finally
luring Johnson to the ground. Following a frantic scramble, the
23-year-old Englishman found the heel hook, secured it and scored
the finish. Known for his devastating triangle choke, Sass has
delivered 11 of his first 12 victories by submission.

Easton Victorious in UFC Debut

In his first appearance in more than two years,
Alliance MMA representative Mike Easton
put away Byron
Bloodworth with a pair of devastating knees to the body in the
second round of their undercard duel at 135 pounds. The end came
4:52 into round two.

After a slow start, Easton (11-1, 1-0 UFC) attacked with effective
counterpunching and kicks to the legs. Bloodworth had no answer.
Perhaps out of desperation, he instigated an ill-advised clinch
late in the second round, at which point Easton cracked him with
two knees to the body. Bloodworth (6-2, 0-1 UFC) folded and could
not defend the follow-up punches when the former Ultimate Warrior
Challenge champion pounced.

Easton, a teammate of UFC bantamweight champion Dominick
Cruz, has rattled off six consecutive wins.

Grant Armbar Submits Roller

T.J.
Grant File Photo

Grant transitioned beautifully.

Canadian T.J. Grant
controlled the first two rounds against
WEC import Shane
Roller and then submitted the three-time NCAA All-American
wrestler with a third-round armbar in a preliminary lightweight
matchup. The bout came to a close 2:12 into round three but not
without controversy.

Grant (17-5, 4-3 UFC) deftly switched from a guillotine choke to an
armbar in the third round, at which point referee Fernando Yamasaki
moved in and called the finish despite the fact that Roller never
visibly tapped out. The 32-year-old Oklahoman protested vehemently,
to no avail, as boos showered the cage.

The result overshadowed an impressive performance from Grant, who
took down Roller (10-5, 1-2 UFC) repeatedly and dominated him on
the ground. He swept into side control, avoided two attempted
guillotine chokes and dropped elbows and punches from the crucifix
position in the first round. Then, in the second, he nearly
finished it, as he locked in a rear-naked choke in the waning
moments. Only the
horn saved Roller.

Neer Elbows Slice, Dice Wisniewski

Josh
Neer met Keith
Wisniewski’s clinch attempts with a steady diet of standing
elbows and ultimately stopped the
Duneland Vale Tudo representative on cuts in their preliminary
welterweight matchup. A cageside physician, having viewed the
lacerations above both of Wisniewski’s eyes, called a halt to the
bout in between rounds two and three.

Neer (31-10-2, 5-6 UFC) has won five consecutive fights.

His offense limited to the occasional knee strike and a brutal left
hook to the body at the end of round one, Wisniewski (28-13-1, 0-2
UFC) never got in gear. Neer stymied him with low kicks, effective
work in close quarters and the short, standing elbows that finished
the fight.

Watson Stops Fellow Newcomer
Sandoval

Walel
Watson posted his ninth win in 10 outings, as he stopped
previously unbeaten Shark
Fights bantamweight champion Joseph
Sandoval on first-round punches in a preliminary matchup
between UFC newcomers. The end came just 77 seconds into round
one.

Watson (9-2, 1-0 UFC) briefly floored his foe with a head kick,
swarmed on Sandoval (6-1, 0-1 UFC) as he stood and sent him back to
his posterior with a flurry of punches. Soon after, Mario Yamasaki
stepped in on Sandoval’s behalf, even as he popped back to his feet
with a disappointed reaction.